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BA promises to clear 'luggage mountain'

03/01/2007

British Airways (BA) has today apologised to passengers who have lost their luggage during a difficult festive season and pledged to reunite thousands of missing bags with their owners.

About 10,000 bags did not make it to their intended destination over the Christmas period and many have still not been delivered.

The airline was severely affected by the thick fog which enveloped much of the country before Christmas and also experienced a "fault with a baggage belt" at terminal four at London Heathrow airport.

Passengers have complained that they have seen piles of bags near the baggage carousels at Heathrow and questions have been raised about how secure the bags are in storage and the length of time it has taken to contact their owners.

But BA has sought to reassure passengers that as much as possible is being done to resolve the problem.

"We apologise to those customers who have travelled without their bags over the Christmas and New Year holiday period," an airline spokesperson said.

The spokesperson added that the airline normally deals with 75,000 bags a day but that a "combination of events largely beyond our control" have caused the current problems.

"The backlogs take time to clear as the process of handling delayed baggage is complex, due to the enhanced levels of security screening it needs," BA said.

"This also means that much of the work has to be done manually rather than using the automated baggage systems.

"We have been using extra freighter aircraft and lorries to Europe to carry delayed bags to their final destinations. We have also been getting extra staff and volunteers from across the airline to clear the backlog and baggage handlers are working overnight shifts to process bags while the airport is closed."

BA says that customers still waiting for their luggage should visit the airline's online tracker system to trace their property.

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